Xiaomi smartphones are famous for their excellent value for money, but the presence of intrusive marketing content often clouds the user experience. Owners of the popular Redmi Note 8 Pro model regularly encounter banner ads that appear in system applications and even on a locked screen. It's not just visual noise, but a built-in mechanism for monetizing the MIUI operating system that requires manual adjustment to turn off.
In this article, we will discuss detailed step-by-step instructions to clean the interface of your device from unnecessary garbage. Removing ads does not require superuser rights or flashing the gadget, just change several parameters in the hidden menus sequentially, you will learn to block the system services responsible for displaying banners, and return to your Redmi original cleanliness of the interface.
Understanding how Xiaomi’s recommendation system works will help you not only remove current banners, but also prevent them from appearing in the future after updates.We’ll look at both standard methods through the settings menu and more advanced ways affecting application network permissions. Disabling the MSA service (MIUI System Ads) is a key step to completely clean the system.
The Nature of the Appearance of Advertising Banners in MIUI
MIUI’s advertising integrations are not a bug, but a feature that keeps the company’s devices low-cost. The system uses a dedicated service that analyzes your actions and shows personalized content. On Redmi Note 8 Pro, these ads can pop up when you open folders, in the Security, Music app, and, most annoyingly, on the lock screen.
The main source of irritation is the MSA service, which is responsible for collecting data and displaying targeted ads, and without it, any other manipulations can be temporary, and it is worth noting the work of mdapp, which often acts as an auxiliary module for downloading advertising materials in the background.
Users often confuse system advertising with virus software, but this is a legitimate, if intrusive, firmware functionality. To effectively combat this, you need to approach the issue in a comprehensive manner, disabling not only visible recommendations, but also their delivery channels.
⚠️ Warning: A complete shutdown of system services may cause some built-in features to malfunction, such as a browser news feed or personalized recommendations in a music service.
It’s important to understand that operating system updates can reset some user settings, so after a major Android or MIUI update, you’ll have to repeat the settings check procedure, which will ensure that your Redmi Note 8 Pro remains free of intrusive content.
Disabling recommendations in system applications
The first and easiest step is to turn off personalized ads in the main interfaces of the system, starting with the global settings that affect the behavior of most embedded utilities, and you need to find the section responsible for getting recommendations from the company.
Go to the settings menu and follow the path Password and Security → Authorization and Privacy → Privacy → Advertising Services. Here you need to deactivate the Receive Recommendations switch. This action will prevent the system from using your ID to select ads.
Next, you should go through the key apps that the banners show most. In the Security app, click on the gear in the top right corner and find "Get recommendations" by turning it off. You should do the same thing in the Music, Video and Download apps.
For File Manager, the path may be slightly different: click on three menu bars, select Settings → About, and turn off the Recommendations option. These actions will significantly reduce the amount of visual noise in your Redmi interface.
Remember that some applications may require a reboot to apply the changes. After completing all the above steps, it is advisable to restart the device so that the new settings take effect in all system processes.
Blocking MSA and system services
MSA (MIUI System Ads) is the main engine of advertising in Xiaomi devices, and its forced shutdown and auto-start ban is a critical step in the fight for clean screen, and without this step, ads can continue to appear, especially in folders and on the desktop.
To start, go to Settings → Applications → All Apps. In the list, find the msa app. Click on it and select the option “Other Permits.” You must deny Internet access (both via Wi-Fi and mobile data), then go back and click “Start in Autoboot” by turning it off.
A similar procedure is recommended for the system application mdapp, which often works in conjunction with MSA and is responsible for displaying media content, and disabling network access for these components effectively “muffles” the delivery channels of banner ads.
☑️ Checklist of lockdown MSA
The system can warn you that disabling these services will affect other applications. In the case of MSA, this effect is minimal and only applies to advertising content, so such warnings can be ignored. If the system requires confirmation of action, click OK or Still disable.
⚠️ Attention: When attempting to disconnect MSA The system can ask you a few times about your decision and turn on a countdown timer.
If you notice that the widgets or newsfeeds you really need have stopped working after you turn off the MSA, you can always revert permissions back, however, for most users using third-party launchers or a standard interface without unnecessary elements, this will not be a problem.
Setting up the lock screen and wallpaper carousel
One of the most annoying features on the Redmi Note 8 Pro is the Wallpaper Carousel, which not only changes pictures, but also actively broadcasts ad units, news and offers on a locked screen, and you can remove this ad only by completely disabling the feature.
Go to Settings → Lock screen. Find the wallpaper carousel (or "Glance" in the new firmware versions). Inside this menu, turn off the "Enable wallpaper carousel" switch. After that, only your static image or standard watch will remain on the lock screen.
Also in this section, check the "Designs" settings. Make sure that the themes with built-in ads are not activated. Sometimes banner ads can be part of a third-party theme, so returning to the standard theme "Classic" or "Standard" helps solve the problem.
What if the wallpaper carousel returns on its own?
Once the wallpaper carousel is turned off, the lock screen will become significantly cleaner and more functional, you will no longer accidentally open advertising links while trying to unlock the phone, and this will also positively affect the autonomy of the device, as background content loading will stop.
Cleaning folders and desktop from advertising
Owners of the Redmi Note 8 Pro often notice that when you open the application folders at the bottom, the line "Recommended Apps" appears. This is also part of the MSA system, but it has its own separate display settings, and you can remove this element through the settings of the shell itself.
Go to Settings → Desktop. Find the Recommendations or Receive Recommendations switch and put it in an inactive state. If there is no such item in the shared menu, click on any folder on your desktop, then the folder name to open its settings, and turn off the Recommended Applications there.
Another source of visual noise can be the Downloads app, which often displays a recommendation banner when it opens, so to remove it, open the app, click three dots in the corner, select Settings, and turn off Receive Recommendations.
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Tip: Use third-party launchers like Nova Launcher or Lawnchair.They completely replace Xiaomi's standard desktop and have no built-in advertising, giving more flexibility in customization.
Regularly cleaning the folder cache can also help if settings get lost. Go to Settings → Apps → All Apps → Desktop (or Desktop System) and click Clear Cache. This won't delete your icons, but update the interface configuration files.
Additional methods and DNS blocking
For advanced users who want to be guaranteed to block all ads, including those that may leak into apps, it is recommended to use DNS (Private DNS), a method that blocks requests to known ad servers at the network level.
In the phone settings, find Connection and Sharing → Private DNS (the path may vary depending on the Android version). Select the option “DNS Provider Host Name” and type in the address: dns.adguard.com. Save settings.
This method does not require the installation of additional applications and works for all connections, including Wi-Fi and mobile Internet, but be prepared for the fact that some sites or applications may stop displaying content correctly if their servers are blocked by a filter.
| Method | Efficiency | Difficulty | Impact on the system |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSA shutdown | Tall. | Low. | Minimum |
| Private DNS | Maximum | Medium | Possible conflicts |
| Application settings | Medium | Low. | Safe. |
| Third-party launcher | High (for desktop) | Medium | Changes the interface |
Using Private DNS is especially important for the Redmi Note 8 Pro, since this device is no longer a flagship and saving CPU resources on processing advertising scripts can positively affect overall performance.
⚠️ Attention: When in use DNS-filters make sure you have an alternative way to access the internet (such as mobile internet) if you have Wi-Fi settings DNS will cause the loss of connection.